So as you may recall, I'm a pretty big fan of Futurerecordings Label, and recently they've decided to experiment with the site Kickstarter. On Kickstarter, fans can give money to whoever is asking for it in return for various rewards. In this case, what's being funded is the new album by Years of Rice and Salt, a post rock outfit that released an EP on the label a few years back. Now, the album itself is already done - what's being funded is the physical release of the record. As for the music, it's fantastic - some of the best post rock I've heard all year. You can listen to the whole thing here. This is an awesome opportunity to bring fantastic music into the real world, so donate what you can!

Friday, July 1, 2011

I know I keep saying I'll write more here, but I can never kick myself into doing it. Oh well, here's my report of 2011 so far - favorite albums, songs, etc.

The Antlers - Burst Apart

This album is not Hospice. Nor does it try to be. It's a collection of songs that you can listen to without becoming overly depressed, which is nice. Peter Silberman is at the top of his game here, channeling every ounce of emotion he can in his falsetto. He's seriously our generations Jeff Buckley in my opinion. Favorite tracks would have to be I Don't Want Love (a rather cynical, almost violent love song), Rolled Together (a vocal high point, especially on live versions) and Putting The Dog To Sleep (the most "Hospice-ey" song on the album).

I Don't Want Love

Rolled Together (Live From SXSW)

Putting The Dog To Sleep

Battles - Ice Cream

This is probably the funnest song of the summer. From the UH AH UH AH UH AH stuff at the start, the generally funky fresh mood, and the incomprehensible, sometimes Spanish lyrics, this track just screams kiddy pool and sunglasses. The rest of the album is good too, check it out.

Braids - Native Speaker

This was the first album I fell in love with this year. I've heard comparisons to Animal Collective, and I gueeeeeeeeeeeeess that's accurate. I dunno. Synth and drum (very cool drums at that) driven music with a fantastic female vocalist. It's got a summery feel to it with a bit of a dark twist, especially in tracks like Lammicken. Another key track is Glass Deers, where the vocals soar all over the place.This is a good year for vocalists isn't it?

Glass Deers

Lammicken

Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi ft. Norah Jones - Seasons Trees

This is seriously the sexiest song I've heard in a long time, again because of the vocals. This whole album has a very romantic mood to it, and this song is the epitome of that feeling. Check the rest of the album out.

Our Goal Of Sorts

What we want to do here at Obscure or Otherwise is introduce you to some music you might like, or at least tell you about some music we like. We also believe in supporting artists, so we encourage anyone who enjoys the things we post to buy albums by those artists.